Air France-KLM (AF) Q3 2026 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Q3 revenue rose 7.6% to €9.916bn; adjusted operating profit increased €126m to €1,346m, with a 13.6% margin.

• Unit revenue rose 7.0% at constant currency, while unit costs increased 0.1% on a constant-fuel, constant-currency, ex-ETS basis.

• Passenger volumes reached 29.7m, up 1.8% YoY; new-generation aircraft accounted for 39% of the fleet, up 7 points.

Financial highlights

• Q3 net income was €938m versus €768m; net income attributable to equity holders was €908m versus €730m.

• 9M revenue rose 7.5% to €26.672bn and adjusted operating profit increased €173m to €1.824bn; net income declined to €877m from €1.168bn.

• 9M traffic revenue increased to €24.010bn from €22.337bn; fuel and CO₂ costs rose to €6.114bn from €5.118bn.

• 9M operating free cash flow was €1.834bn versus €1.560bn.

Outlook and guidance

• FY 2026 capacity growth is forecast at ~2%; long-haul ~2%, short- and medium-haul ~-1%, and Transavia ~+8%.

• FY unit-cost guidance is ~+1%, including a 0.5% premiumization impact; net capex remains below €3bn and leverage guidance at 1.5x–2.0x.

• FY fuel bill after hedging, excluding SAF, is estimated at $9.2bn, $2.3bn above FY 2025; estimated hedge benefit is $2.0bn.

• Q4 fuel consumption is 62% hedged; FY 2027 is 54% hedged based on the October 30 forward curve.

• Q4 forward booking load factors were 74% long-haul, 64% short- and medium-haul, and 63% Transavia, versus 73%, 64%, and 63% a year earlier.